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I'm looking through one of the interviews with Jervis 'tread-head' Johnson for epic (sometime between 1997 and 2003 i believe) and instead of naming the Leman Russ Demolisher as the most popular variant in service, he instead cites a trio of classes which notably did NOT include the demolisher. So the question is thus, since the Leman Russ Demolisher has been around since 1995, whereupon this interview came after that year, when did the idea that the Demolisher was the most popular enter mainstream perception? and consquently, why do the other three named variants not feature in the public mind with anywhere near the same prominence as the Demolisher.

Although over 90% of Leman Russ in service are the standard model, or the standard model
with very minor local variations, there are dozens of significantly different variants also in
service. Some of these are extremely rare. Only one working prototype of the Leman Russ
Arachnos variant, which replaced the tracks with eight robotic legs, is known to exist, and other
variants are equally as rare. However, some of the more successful variants have become well
established over the millennia, and are now a standard part of the inventory of most Imperial
Guard armies. Amongst these by far the most popular are a triumvirate of designs, called the
Leman Russ Conqueror, Leman Russ Vanquisher, and Leman Russ Exterminator <or it sit
Executioner – please check. I’ll use Exterminator for now>.

That was probably retconned by Imperial Armour and the Imperial Guard codices and army lists in the 2000's. The lore changed quite a lot through 2nd edition until it settled in 3rd.

Vanquishers became a rare variant after the primary forge world producing them (Tigrus) was lost with production only just restarting by M41 (with one of those two forge worlds also lost to Tyranids- Gryphonne IV), and Conquerors were developed and primarily produced by the aformentioned forge world eaten by Tyranids. Conquerors are produced on other worlds by M41 but they are a relatively new and niche design compared to variants like the Demolisher, Vanquisher, and Exterminator.

The Exterminator is definitely produced widely, but the Armoured Company list from 2004 does list it as a rare variant needing a doctrine to buy back, unlike the Demolisher.

It probably isn't the Executioner- that is a fairly niche variant only produced on Ryza by M41.

I'll dig through the other books to see when I get chance.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Found it- Imperial Armour Volume 1 (2003) explicitly states the Demolisher is the most common Leman Russ variant. Note that at the time, the current Imperial Guard codex had dropped all variants except the Demolisher. Vanquishers were noted as rare as early as Codex: Imperial Guard (3rd edition, 1st codex [1999]), this lore might have appeared a little earlier in the Citadel Journal. This Codex states Exterminators are a common variant. Exterminators are still noted as being a common variant in Imperial Armour volume 1, but Conquerors are stated to be a rare variant.


The most you get from the 5th edition and onwards Codices is that Exterminators and Eradicators are common and Vanquishers and Executioners are rare.

Demolisher also fills a very specific role, and one most Regiments of Imperial Guard will face. Specifically, blatting buildings.

The Leman Russ itself, especially in its original loadout of Battle Cannon, Lascannon and Heavy Bolter Sponsons is more an all-rounder. Doesn’t really specialise, but there are few things it can’t do something to.

The more specialised, the more niche. It might be nice to have a full Company of say, Vanquishers. But there are many engagements where its specialism just isn’t that suited.

Sure it can tear up say, Orky Light vehicles with ease. But so can the standard Leman Russ.

Actually full regiments of Vanquishers would be superior in every way except sustained operations with poor resupply (they carry a smaller ammunition load). Since 5th edition, the rules for Vanquishers have limited them to only fire anti-tank rounds, but in lore (and earlier rules) they can fire a high-explosive round of comparable efficacy to the standard battle cannon, at greater range, and also have the option of the greatly improved anti-tank round.

The Mechanicus went to unusual lengths to restore the design because they are such an improvement over the basic Russ.

Tl;dr: it is a rules choice to make Vanquishers specialised, not a feature of their lore.

Not to mention the Beast Slayer shells, if you want to talk about versatility

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Demolisher also fills a very specific role, and one most Regiments of Imperial Guard will face. Specifically, blatting buildings.

The Leman Russ itself, especially in its original loadout of Battle Cannon, Lascannon and Heavy Bolter Sponsons is more an all-rounder. Doesn’t really specialise, but there are few things it can’t do something to.

The more specialised, the more niche. It might be nice to have a full Company of say, Vanquishers. But there are many engagements where its specialism just isn’t that suited.

Sure it can tear up say, Orky Light vehicles with ease. But so can the standard Leman Russ.

Honestly, if i was asked to pick a 'all-rounder' i might've said the Leman Russ Exterminator. A loadout of Twin Linked Autocannons + lascannon + HB sponsons seem pretty.... multi role. And unless it's limited anti-air capability and slightly higher top speed was retconned, those are something it is capable of that a regular Leman Russ probably isn't.

I also would've assumed the Exterminator to be cheaper to produce and resupply (since it uses run of the mill autocannons)

It loses range, and it is worse against mid-heavy tanks/monsters. It also cannot perform as an improvised mobile artillery platform like the larger round of a battle cannon can.

Also autocannon platforms are kinda everywhere in the IG arsenal to the point using a Leman Russ chassis for that feels like a waste.

I would guess that Jervis simply wasn't thinking of the Demolisher as a Leman Russ "variant" because it already had its own entry in the codex. He meant out of the new Leman Russ variants that were being introduced (split off from the "Battle Tank" version).

 Orkeosaurus wrote:
I would guess that Jervis simply wasn't thinking of the Demolisher as a Leman Russ "variant" because it already had its own entry in the codex. He meant out of the new Leman Russ variants that were being introduced (split off from the "Battle Tank" version).

This is likely. Teh demolisher also has had rules and a kit since 2nd edition and in every edition since. The exterminator (and I think vanquisher) had rules in 3rd, but not 3.5, then again in 5th and after, but only the exterminator had a kit. Ditto the griffon mortar, which lost the rules after 5th, aside from FW, and even then is now legends.

Teh conqueror was always unique in that it was able to shoot a blast template on the move because it wasn't ordnance, but really overlaps with the design space of the eradicator in the current rules.

I would guess the inspiration for the vanquisher is pretty openly the Sherman Firefly, which mounted a dedicate anti-tank gun at the cost of the regular Shermans highly effective HE rounds. My guess is the whole "they're very rare" was to explain why there wasn't a model more than anything else.